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Rapping Back #81:
Portland Copwatch member Dan Handelman analyzes
Police "Union" social media (formerly the "Rap Sheet" newsletter)
for the People's Police Report

Focusing on Feds Fosters Faulty Force Fellowship

Most of the information put out in the last few months on the Facebook page of the Portland Police Association (PPA), the "union" representing rank-and-file officers, Sergeants, Detectives and 911 operators, has focused on the uprisings after the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Surprisingly, the first such post on May 28 featured PPA President Daryl Turner declaring that what happened to Floyd was "revolting, incomprehensible and unacceptable." This proves the adage that even a broken clock is right twice a day. Turner went on to state that the murder should "send a chill down the spine of all law enforcement officers and citizens," vowing that "this will not happen in my community, in my department, in my organization or on my watch." To which our response is, do you mean it will not happen "again?" (See: deaths of Dickie Dow, Damon Lowery, James Chasse, Darius Johnson and Richard Barry in custody as well as countless shooting deaths.)

That said, this was the first of ten posts related to the death of George Floyd and the subsequent uprising for racial justice and police accountability. Unlike PPA output in the last few years, this means these topical remarks represented the majority (63%) of 16 posts, while the usual dominant topic of "bluewashing" police-friendly stories fell to a far second with just four posts (25%). The remaining two posts focused on the city's budget.

Spinning the Narrative: Police Monopoly on Violence Outweighs Pledges for Change

Generally speaking, the PPA's rhetoric from the start has been that they are willing to sit down and talk about the police reforms being demanded by people protesting on a daily basis here in Portland (see Protests article in this issue). However, it eventually becomes clear that for the PPA, this willingness to talk has to be filtered through a police lens. An un-narrated video taken by police criminalists from behind a fence surrounding Central Precinct showed up on June 6. When plumes of smoke start rising up near the fence, it is not clear that those are from police chemical weapons rather than the protestors, which is the implication. Yes, water bottles can be seen coming toward the line of cops-- and missing-- before the stormtrooper-like squadron retreats to avoid their own gas.

By June 23 Turner is talking about how officers "served with honor" while they "endured having rocks, bottles, fireworks, urine, feces and bricks" thrown at them, along with "hateful words." He says the protests are being "used to promote false narratives of those with self- serving political agendas." We have addressed this before but will say it again: people who want to get the proverbial and literal foot of the police off of their neck may be self-serving, but their instinct for self- preservation is more altruistic than a collective bargaining unit made up of armed state actors seeking to pad its coffers, build its membership and amass political power. Incidentally this pep talk was part of a post meant to assure officers that they would all be allowed to take time off to grieve George Floyd's death per a city policy, but people would have to wait in line to get approval.

On July 1, another post recognizes officers' "tireless work," particularly highlighting their actions outside PPA headquarters on June 30. Turner refers to the protest there as a "riot" at the same time he admits there was only minor damage to one window of the office and, he emphasizes, contrary to rumor, nobody broke in and took information. He thanks officers for their perseverance in what he calls "dark times," which is an interesting turn of phrase for an African American cop amidst an uprising against institutional racism.

The next day, Turner released an angry letter to Oregon House Speaker Tina Kotek for her questioning the violent police tactics at the PPA office, noting that he and another cop were inside so it was not "empty" as she claimed. What they were doing there late on a Monday night is unknown. Turner complains that people had "hijacked" the racial equity message, wondering why Kotek didn't express concern that people had set fires at the North Precinct on June 26. It's likely he does not realize that building is not in Kotek's legislative district, which was why she spoke out in the first place about the use of chemical weapons in a mixed-residential neighborhood. Turner says that people have no right to "riot, loot, burn and destroy," continuing to never once mention that the members of his Association fired chemicals and projectiles as well as bull-rushing a crowd they had told to leave but had surrounded. He quotes community elder Ron Herndon, who led the Black community in protests against police violence in the 70s and 80s, as saying the officers were showing "restraint." Perhaps compared to beating people on the head with batons and shooting them, yes, but many would argue that the PPB is still out of control.

On July 6, Turner threw down the gauntlet to the Mayor and City Council saying "this cannot continue," pointing out that protests had continued for 40 days-- and stating officers showed "amazing restraint." It's not clear exactly what he meant when he added that widespread video of protestors being attacked by police "saturated our eyes and ears, sowing discontent." This is a backwards way of recognizing that the police are reacting to protests against police violence by engaging in police violence. It's not as if the media are making fake videos of officer conduct; in fact it is officers' inclusion of the media as recipients of violence that has opened the eyes of many local reporters. Turner describes "disrespect for people, property and the law" as the epitome of white privilege, again ignoring the core message of the protests that police uphold the institutions of white supremacy. Turner called on Council to "do their jobs." Eleven days later, he met with the head of Homeland Security after Mayor Wheeler refused to do so-- it is definitely not up to the police "union" to create the policies around how Portland polices its populace nor to welcome unaccountable federal agents to our streets.

After an unfortunate accusation made by Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty in a national magazine (that the PPB was setting the fires at the protests), for which she apologized, Turner posted a rant on July 22. He talks about the importance of the movement recognizing the need to "safeguard treatment of black and brown people by the police" but accuses Hardesty of using her "privilege" (as an elected official, presumably, not as a black woman, which Turner fails to mention) to use the protests to promote her "personal political agenda."

After two nights of protests outside the Bureau's East Precinct, Turner let loose again, this time in a letter to Mayor Wheeler and newly elected District Attorney Mike Schmidt. He accuses Schmidt's platform of promoting police accountability of being a "veiled threat to prosecute police." Turner also says City Council is "handcuffing" the police by preventing them from responding to crowds unless they escalate to violent criminal behavior. This last comment, added to his plea to give police the "latitude to prevent crime," is reminiscint of those who said America fought the Viet Nam war with one hand tied behind their back. Turner is asking for a blessing to use more police violence, which again undermines his postive words about change.

The two other posts related to the uprising are TV news stories: an interview with Turner about "how to move forward as a society" from KOIN-6 (June 2)* and one from KGW-8 with Officer Jakhari Jackson about racism he allegedly endured while policing the protests (July 10).
*-The Facebook post incorrectly indicates this story is from KATU-2.

Budget Bullying

In a lengthy post on June 9, Turner complains about the City's plans to cut back School Resource Officers and the Gun Violence Reduction Team (see Budget article this issue). Focusing on these specialty units' ability to build relationships with people, Turner ignores the disparate racial impact of both programs. He refers to them both as "tools." Turner also states officers respond to people in mental health crisis "but then are chastised for responding," pointing to "inconsistent policies and unclear mandates." This is interesting coming seven years into an Agreement with the US Department of Justice designed to lower the amount of force officers use on people, especially those in crisis. He points to the "broken" social service system and claims police are "the last rung on the ladder and the easy scapegoat for politicians." Strangely enough, one word that is not mentioned at all is the word "contract." This rant was posted one day after the PPA finished their secret negotiations to extend their contract for a year, with guaranteed raises in 2021 (see PPA Contract article this issue). On August 5, Turner tried connecting the admittedly alarming increase in homicides in Portland to the dissolution of the GVRT. However, similar homicide rates have occurred in New York and elsewhere, likely related to the pandemic and economic crisis, since Gun Teams aren't being dissolved all over the US.

In a totally not self-serving photo, PPA President Daryl Turner hands a normal-sized check to the Sunshine Division, which delivers supplies to needy families. Pushing for others to donate, Turner never mentions the Division is a spin-off of Portland Police. He also doesn't explain handing over the check in person in the middle of a pandemic, though he gets one gold star for wearing a mask (May 20).

The Portland Police Association does not set policy. However, some PPA leadership express negative attitudes toward citizens and civilian oversight in their web postings. We worry these ideas may spread throughout Portland's ranks. The PPA's website is <ppavigil.org>.

September, 2020
Also in PPR #81

Portland Copwatch
PO Box 42456
Portland, OR 97242
(503) 236-3065/ Incident Report Line (503) 321-5120
e-mail: copwatch@portlandcopwatch.org

Portland Copwatch is a grassroots, volunteer organization promoting police accountability through citizen action.

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